Peoria Party

The Peoria Party (/piˈɔːriə/ pee-OR-ee-ə) was a group of men from Peoria in the U.S. state of Illinois, who set out about May 1, 1839, with the intention to colonize the Oregon Country on behalf of the United States and to drive out the English fur-trading companies operating there. The men of the Peoria Party were among the early pioneers who used the Oregon Trail.